DD1 is 3 years old and reliably able to avoid swallowing toothpaste. So now I need to address the question I've been avoiding - what about fluoride?

I would love to hear from those who do not get any fluoride at all (either toothpaste or through drinking water), as well as those who only do fluoridated water or paste.

Currently DH & I both do fluoridated water and paste. I do have an appreciation for fluoride, as I once went without fluoridated water for 4 days and my teeth began chipping. I'd just like some reassurance/advice so that we'll not have similar things happen if we change.

We avoid flouride. We don't use it in our toothpaste and I'm sure we get some from water but try to drink bottled water more often than not. Check out Weston Price. The research I did showed that the flouride in toothpaste/water isn't the kind that helps teeth. I also read it can cause cancer in large amounts. My son had cavities so I got serious about dental health and his cavities are much better and it certainly isn't because of flouride.

It also is toxic to babies. When we used toothpaste with flouride and my son would grab it I would freak out like he was grabbing medicine. I didn't like having something like that on my counter even though he was never unsupervised to where he could eat a whole tube of toothpaste, or even open it.

We don't do fluoridation in any form (city water is not even fluoridated). And we have strong, healthy teeth. We avoid refined foods as much as possible. We eat a traditional foods type diet, but are not "perfect" with it either. We brush with natural baking soda. Nothing special, really.

You may have seen this already, but here is a site about the effects of fluoride:

I think we would have to clean diet up in order to see good results if we omitted fluoride altogether?

I think that has a lot to do with it. I find that when I am consuming white flour several times in a week (like when we resort to eating out when life is crazy...ugh) that my teeth begin to hurt. Not at first, but after maybe 2 or 3 more times of having it (in the same time period). But when I cut all of that out, eat the way we normally eat (whole foods) my teeth heal and are fine again. So I do think that white flour and white sugar and other refined foods provoke the teeth into decay. Something obvious, I guess. But the above is just further proof to me.

We are now a no flouride family. The flouride builds up a fake enamal that becomes really brittle when you stop so that is why you might have had chipping. Our expereince was our teeth were originally sensitive when brushing when we switched. DD has never had any flouride.

The flouride builds up a fake enamal that becomes really brittle when you stop so that is why you might have had chipping.

Wow, this is eye-opening to me. I really wasn't too educated on fluoride except I knew it was a poison, and I have a hard time putting poison into DD's mouth and then saying "don't swallow!".

I will keep reading and thinking how to begin this. I think I'll modify my own diet and brushing first, as the guinea pig. We are under stress more than usual right now, so it may take a little while before I have the energy to change.

My teeth are so full of fillings (and cavities) I don't know what will happen, but I don't think this kind of change (diet hand-in-hand with dental care) could hurt.

Fluoride is poisonous to everyone not just babies. It causes thyroid problems and is a neurotoxin.

It makes bones as well as teeth brittle as it effects them in the same way!

DS has *never* had fluoride in any form, no town water, no topical application, not in toothpaste, no formula. He has never had a cavity or weakened enamel of any kind.

We have been limited by food allergies/intolerances and have had to do steroid treatments several times for croup so it's certainly a strong testimony of success with those obstacles as well! We do a traditional diet: raw milk/butter/cream, bone broths, CLO, wild seafood, pastured eggs, grassfed meats, whole grains, etc.